On Tuesday, a report from the Chicago Sun-Times surfaced, making the claim that Minnesota Timberwolves swingman Jimmy Butler will not re-sign with the Minnesota Timberwolves on the basis of his distaste for teammate Karl-Anthony Towns. Butler’s agent Bernie Lee responded to the report, giving the following statement to Twin Cities Power Press:
“We had to fly to Europe today for a charity event, so we’ve been on a plane for 14 hours so I’m playing catch up, so bare with me. But the one thing I will say is, anyone who knows Jimmy, this is Mr. Taylor, Thibs, to every player he’s ever played with, they know one thing about Jimmy… he doesn’t do passive aggressive.
“If he has something to say to someone he says it without hesitation and everyone involved knows this. So I say that to say, if he had an opinion to share about anyone or anything in particular they would know and they wouldn’t have to read about it.”
Lee didn’t directly say “Butler likes Towns,” but this is still a denial, more or less. It would’ve been a stronger one if he Lee had come out and said Butler loves being in Minnesota and is a big fan of Towns, but oh well. It wouldn’t be insanely shocking for Butler to not love Towns’ game. After all, Butler is a scrapper who prides himself on guarding opposing teams’ best players, and Towns, while being an offensive monster, is prone to defensive lapses and an overall lack of awareness.
The Wolves are reportedly preparing to offer Butler a four-year max extension worth $110 million, but Butler could make significantly more money if he waits until next offseason to re-sign (or sign elsewhere).
